Beatlemania: Christie’s New York

As a muse the Beatles are successful in business. And when no one spoke of brands in the 60’s, they were well on their way to becoming one. In February 1964, more than 3000 teenagers congregated at New York’s JF Kennedy airport to welcome the Beatles as they landed in flesh and blood to unveil the truth of their iconicity. On their tour there were 100 policemen permanently with them. Beatles wigs, fashion, haircuts, everything spelt the tirade of a trend. And soft rock and pop ensued in all its euphoria. The concert given at the Washington Coliseum on Feb 11th was part of a defining moment in the Beatles’ career, and it remains both an important event and a notable place in their story. And photographer Mike Mitchell was there to capture it. “Roll Over Beethoven” was chosen by the Beatles to begin the show – and Little Richard, who’s “Long Tall Sally” was chosen to end it. On July 20th nearly forty years later Christies held a historic sale of the Liverpool lads’ photographs captured by the insightful, elegant palette of photographer Mike Mitchell.

‘The auction of The Beatles Illuminated: The Discovered Works of Mike Mitchell was an outstanding success. Christie’s clients sat shoulder to shoulder in the packed saleroom as each of these beautiful and once unknown images were auctioned off, becoming part of the iconic Beatles history. We were honored to present Mike Mitchell’s works and to witness the excitement that the Beatles still inspire all these years later,” according to Christies.

Christie’s The Beatles Illuminated: The Discovered Works of Mike Mitchell, is a sale comprised of 50 lots of unpublished and never-before-seen photographs of the Beatles’ first hysteria-inducing visits to America in 1964. Shot in black and white by photographer Mike Mitchell when he was just 18 years old, the images have been filed away for nearly fifty years. The complete rediscovered collection is expected to realize in the region of $100,000.

The Beatles were unquestionably the most popular, most influential of all rock groups. Their influence expressed itself first of all in the simple sociological dimensions of their success, unmatched in pop-music history with songs that spoke of everyday simplicity and delight. But the band also managed almost single handedly to transform the innocent entertainment of rock-and-roll into the artistically self conscious pretensions of rock with songs like Mr. Postman and Love love me do and Ticket to Ride.

A rare silhouette encircles the figures of the four Beatles as the camera clicks them in that solitude backs to the shutterbug Mitchell.Brilliant in a real, surreal sliver, the image brings back the words of their song. “There are places I remember all my life, though some have changed,” a song begins, “Some for ever, not for better, some have gone and some remain.” In My Life, one of those most-loved Beatles songs – appeared on the band’s 1965 album Rubber Soul, and was apparently born of journalist Kenneth Allsop telling Lennon he should write songs about his childhood. Lennon duly headed off and wrote a poem based on a bus route of his youth, winding its way through Liverpool, past Penny Lane and Strawberry Fields.

A single image of Paul McCartney is elusive as much as innocent in the appeal of the schoolboy look. These black and white images define the generation of the Beatles and the fact that these images were shot on one night February 11, 1964, makes it the scoop of the century. As the Beatles began to define their generation, it became apparent that John Lennon and Paul McCartney were the creative forces behind the band. Ringo Starr on the drums appears cute and cuddly as well as vigorous in his rhythmic restlessness. George Harrison echoes eloquence playing lead guitar. Lennon and McCartney who composed most of the band’s songs and were the lead singers create their own characteristics soaked in the sounds of their own songs. These images show aptly that they worked together in a classically complementary manner. Those of us who grew up on a staple diet of Beatles numbers know for a fact that McCartney was the sunny, bright one, the purveyor of lilting ballads and cheery love songs. Lennon was the harder, fiercer man, the true rocker of the foursome, with the deepest, most convoluted sense of rock’s anger and potential triumph.

A fragment of the drum set with the Beatles insignia is enough to get your juices flowing.

You also reckon that this was the band that was the greatest ever but also the most short-lived of all bands, which shot to international fame in 1964, were at one another’s throats by 1968, and blew apart for good in 1970—yet managed to fight self-destructively with Apple over trademarks and music rights until last year.

Beatles memorabilia have always done well at auctions. In 2005 the suit worn on the cover of Beatles’ Abbey Road album fetched $118,000.In 2007, a lock of John Lennon’s hair taped inside the cover of one of his books and inscribed to his hair dresser sold at auction for nearly $50,000.

The Beatles “developed, constructed, and implemented the most successful business model of all time.” And this auction of rare photographs will prove well beyond doubt that they were business savvy. For the ‘Fab Four’ this is for posterity, and Mike Mitchells proves that sometimes we can recapture ‘Yesterday’ even as this auction hopes to say to a whole new generation, ‘Here Comes the Sun’.

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Critic and Curator Uma Nair has been writing for the past 29 years on art and culture She has written as critic for Times of India and Economic Times. She believes that art is a progressive sojourn. And there are those who are taught and those who are self taught. She herself had learnt by looking at the best shows in Washington D.C. and New York. And life is about learning and growing...

Critic and Curator Uma Nair has been writing for the past 29 years on art and culture She has written as critic for Times of India and Economic Times. She b. . .